2017 Beaujolais

Alex’s is an exemplary Beaujolais-Villages, made the traditional way, using carbonic maceration and neutral (stainless steel) vessels. Expect lifted aromas of violets and red berries, lashings of juicy fruit on the palate, and a long, mineral finish – a nod to the protrusions of blue granite throughout Alex’s vineyards. In the region, a fresh, fruity Beaujolais-Villages like this might be paired with anything from charcuterie to roast chicken to a friture (akin to fried whitebait, traditionally fished from the Saône river) which illustrates just how versatile it is. It also makes a mouth-watering apéritif.
Will Heslop – Burgundy Buying Assistant, autumn 2018

This much-loved cuvée is blended from a handful of parcels (seven, give or take, depending on the vagaries of the vintage), with a variety of aspects and soils – mostly blue and pink granite – around the volcanic hill of Brouilly. It tends to taste well right out of the blocks and the 2017 is no exception, with aromas of summer pudding, violets and subtle savoury notes. It’s also capable of serious ageing, becoming yet more savoury – and more Pinot-like – with time in bottle. Drink now to 2026.
Will Heslop,Burgundy Buying Assistant (winter 2018)

Wild Soul is Julien’s “project”, a wine made from grapes bought from trusted vignerons who have well-sited vines at high altitude on rocky, granite soils. Made in the same manner as his other wines, with no sulphur during the vinification or élevage and no fining or filtration, this is raised in a concrete egg and neutral tank, in order to preserve purity of fruit. The result is a pure, refreshing expression of Gamay which lends itself to every occasion. 

Exceptionally steep slopes of granite and schist endow the best wines of the Côte de Brouilly with a complexity and minerality rarely found in those of the flatter vineyards of Brouilly (a separate Cru, which loops around the first). In 2017, this cuvée’s mineral core seems enrobed in rich, ripe dark fruit, suggestive of the vines’ location – a south-facing parcel, mid-slope (where cherries once grew, hence the name). It’s a seductive prospect now but will only improve with time in bottle. Drink now to 2023.
Will Heslop, Burgundy Buying Assistant (winter 2018)

Régnié is situated next to its better-known cousin, Morgon, and this wine displays a little of its neighbour’s structure. It is a blend of parcels; one on sandy granite soils giving mid-palate richness, the other stony gravel which adds spice and structure. This is a fruity and gentle wine to be enjoyed on its own or with simple dishes. 

Javernières hails from the eponymous lieu-dit, at the foot of the Côte du Py in Morgon. Here, schist gives way to soils of deep clay, resulting in rich, concentrated wines, which pinote (become Pinot-like) as they age. Eighth-generation vigneron Louis-Benoît Desvignes attributes this cuvée’s depth of colour to its long, slow vinification – with no punching down, but a grill to keep the macerating fruit submerged – in open concrete vats. The 2017 is a showstopper, with heady aromas of flowers and savoury spice, and exceptional density on the palate. Only after another year or two, as its massive tannins begin to loosen up, will it reveal the extent of its complexity – fortunately, for the time being, we have a case or two of the ’14 remaining.
Will Heslop, Burgundy Buying Assistant (summer 2018)

Julien’s Fleurie is, in our minds, his finest wine. Raised in old oak barrels from a very famous address in Chambolle-Musigny, this is a classic Fleurie; seductive, perfumed and ethereal. Julien’s winemaking style – using minimal sulphur and intervening as little as possible – ensures that this is a wine which constantly evolves in the glass, morphing from red fruit to black, from brambles to irises and rose petals. A truly complex wine which is rich yet refreshing.